Donald Trump has boasted he could shoot somebody in the middle of Fifth Avenue and still wouldn’t lose voters. Facebook, it would seem, is confident it enjoys the same unthinking loyalty. Just days after it announced a major security flaw affecting millions of users, the company launched Portal, a smart screen riddled with tracking technology.

Portal, which will go on sale next month in the US, is supposedly designed to make video chatting hands-free and immersive. A smart camera follows you around and ensures you stay in view while the system minimises background noise and enhances the voice of whoever is talking. “It’s like having your own cinematographer and sound crew direct your personal video calls,” Facebook says. It doesn’t mention the fact that said cinematographer has a history of flogging your personal information to all and sundry.

Oh, but we’ve built Portal with your privacy and security in mind, Facebook has stressed. We’ve designed tools that give you complete control over your private information! I don’t know about you, but I think I’ve heard that one before.

Whenever Facebook talks about how much it values users’ data, it is worth remembering that Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t operate according to the same sharing-is-caring principles he seeks to instil in others. Zuck, let’s not forget, described the first Facebook users as “dumb fucks” because they trusted him with their personal information. He puts sticky tape over his computer’s webcam. He makes his contractors sign nondisclosure agreements. He values his privacy so much he spent $30m (£22m) on houses near his Palo Alto property with the intention of tearing them down. Zuck can’t bear the idea a neighbour could be able to peer on to his land, but he wants rest of us to put a Facebook video screen in the middle of our homes.